


Rehearsing Life

by joan_waterhouse



Category: Merlin RPS - Fandom
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-03-26
Updated: 2010-03-26
Packaged: 2017-10-17 12:30:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/176873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joan_waterhouse/pseuds/joan_waterhouse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>And sure enough here it was again. Colin's stomach did this thing that felt like racing down the what's-it-called in Park Asterix. Half panic, half joy. Then Bradley's hand was gone and Bradley himself was smiling with an innocence that was nothing but unnerving.</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	Rehearsing Life

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jtsbbsps_dk](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jtsbbsps_dk/gifts).



  


## Rehearsing Life

  


Camelot shrunk away into the distance. There was nothing but Arthur now and Arthur was holding his hand. It felt warm and comfortable, safe. _Like a miniature hug_ , Merlin thought to himself. Now the world seemed to be reduced to his hand alone. This was how life should be. Always. He laced his fingers with Arthur's. _I want you too,_ this said. Then the uproar started. A noise so startling, blaring so loudly that Arthur let go of Merlin's hand. And then Merlin fell. Faster and faster he was heading in the direction of this terrible noise.

Arthur faded and Camelot couldn't even be seen in the distance. Merlin landed in a pool of warm downy blankets and was Merlin no more. The only thing that remained was this dreadful noise that now morphed into a song.

" _Something. Filled up. My heart. With nothing. Someone. Told me not to cry…_ "

Colin reached for his phone, found the snooze button and let his head fall back onto his pillow. Sometimes he really hated mornings.

*

"But just as Arthur kills the guy, Merlin is hit by a spell and rendered blind," Julian announced. "It's only temporary, of course. But this gives us endless opportunities to let Arthur look after Merlin. Brilliant bonding episode with lots of guaranteed 'aww' moments."

By now everyone was leafing through their copies of the script. _Arthur takes Merlin's hand, helps him up and leads him out of the scene,_ Colin found on page seven. In general there appeared to be a lot of "Arthur leading Merlin" and "Arthur directing Merlin's hand" in there. At one point Arthur was even supposed to feed him. Colin did not like it. That is to say he did, though he would much prefer it all to happen to himself instead of Merlin. Not the being blind part, obviously. It was complicated.

Katie and Angel were, predictably, already giggling like schoolgirls; Richard was smiling to himself in a rather soppy way; and Bradley was worrying his bottom lip so hard that Colin feared he'd draw blood any moment.

"Don't be such a child, McGrath!" Bradley snapped as Katie fell into a spine-chilling rendition of a playground song that involved Arthur, Merlin, a tree and an exercise in spelling.

This was definitely going to be an interesting episode to shoot. If Colin ever survived it.

*

  
"Cut," Jeremy yelled and Colin immediately tensed. This was, of course, all Bradley's fault.

The shooting itself had turned out to go better than Colin had feared. To act as if he was blind even though his eyes were open needed so much concentration that holding Bradley's hand while doing so really wasn't that much of an issue. The moments between takes, on the other hand, were a different matter altogether.

It was now the end of their third day and Colin had made some very astonishing observations. At first Bradley had released Colin's hand as soon as the take had been over, had immediately returned to his starting position for the scene and carefully avoided eye contact. But the longer they'd been working, the longer Bradley waited before he let go of Colin's hand. It was not too obvious at first, just a fraction of a second, something Colin could easily have been imagining. But possible hallucinations became a highly improbable explanation two takes ago, when Bradley had started to slowly stroke his thumb over Colin's palm before he released his hand.

And sure enough here it was again. Colin's stomach did this thing that felt like racing down the what's-it-called in Park Asterix. Half panic, half joy. Then Bradley's hand was gone and Bradley himself was smiling with an innocence that was nothing but unnerving.

*

They made their way through the forest back to the castle. Colin had been working hard on keeping his focus all day. Now he could barely walk straight. Next to him Bradley was rambling on about something Colin had decided to tune out a minute ago. His remaining concentration was much better spent on avoiding to trip on every other stone.

"…then she said, 'Besides, that t-shirt looks, like, totally early nineties.' As if I'd even care what… Whoa!"

They had practised this moment for the past three days, and so Colin had barely even realised he'd stumbled before Bradley's hands grasped him tightly. Unlike earlier, now he could allow himself to see. And what he saw he hadn't expected at all. Bradley looked at him, relaxed and calm, with the exact expression he used when Arthur looked at Gwen. Colin's heart started to beat so loudly that he could barely hear anything else.

"Try not to break your legs, Morgan," Bradley said, and didn't show the slightest inclination to move.

"All right," Colin answered. He was feeling dizzy now. There was a strong sense of _déjà-vu_. He searched for something that would tell him what he was supposed to do now. Then Bradley's thumb began slowly stroking Colin's shoulder; it somehow felt like saying goodbye. Once he understood that everything was easy. He simply couldn't allow it to be over this easily and so he ran his hands up Bradley's side, slid them over the rattling chainmail and let the surroundings fade from his mind.

The best part was that this time Colin didn't have to wake up. This time the feeling of comfortable warmth and safety was real. _This_ was how life should be, he thought to himself. The world was nothing but Bradley now and Bradley was kissing him back.

* end *


End file.
